La Vieille Chapelle
Zinal, 1,670 meters above sea level. At the starting point of routes leading toward the Matterhorn stands a chapel — part refuge, part chalet. A high-altitude structure, discreetly sheltered behind its bell gable. At a crossroads of paths and attitudes, it tempers alpine minimalism with a quietly cinematic sensibility, reminiscent of Wes Anderson’s controlled warmth. Beneath its almost medieval exterior, shutters and stained glass filter a soft, carousel-like light, casting pastel tones across the interior. The atmosphere sits somewhere between a royal chamber and a mountaineer’s hideaway: charred timber, glacial opaline lighting, off-piste furniture and Scottish tartans. A place that feels like the final pause before ascent. A threshold on the way to the Imperial Crown and its sacred peaks.
« I adore simple pleasures. They are the last refuge of complex beings. » Oscar Wilde
